Sam Hornish Jr. back to the IRL?

That was the wild story floating amongst the media at Phoenix last weekend. And the announcement on Monday that Penske Racing had hired David Stremme as a test driver only added fuel to the fire.

Listen up, conspiracy theorists. Here's the real deal:

Hornish is doing just fine in NASCAR. As a rookie, he's been able to keep his car in the top 35, keep his nose clean and gain the respect of his fellow drivers. NASCAR is where both he and boss Roger Penske want him to be.

Back in February, Hornish told me that if he could get back behind the wheel of an Indy car it would only be for the Indy 500 - the race - as far as both himself and team owner Penske are concerned.

Hornish is a three-time (2001-02, 06) Indy Racing League champion and an Indy 500 winner. He has nothing else to prove in those cars, except to win a few more Indy 500s.

He does have a lot left to prove in a stock car. And with every lap, he gains more knowledge about how his car is supposed to drive and how he is supposed to drive it. Admittedly, Hornish's biggest issue at this point is that he has to learn about the car and what it needs to make it more comfortable for him.

When it comes to running wide open and running fast, like in his Indy car days, Hornish is as good as they get. Remember his remarkable run in the first half of this year's Daytona 500? When the bump stops and the braking points are taken out of the equation, he's up there, mixing it up with the top dogs of the sport.

A top-10 finish isn't out of the question at Talladega next weekend.

Hornish has said repeatedly that he would love to do double duty on Memorial Day weekend, but it doesn't look like this year. This year it's all about stock cars.

But, there is one interesting scenario that could play out.

Penske has three cars entered for this year's Indy 500. One for two-time 500 winner Helio Castroneves; one for Hornish's replacement at Penske, Kiwi Ryan Briscoe and a third car - the No. 77, with a driver TBA. Of course, that is the same number that Hornish uses for his Sprint Cup ride.

So, if Hornish were "busy" in Indy, Stremme could qualify the 77 car for the Coca Cola 600 and start the race in Hornish's absence, since the start time for the Indy 500 makes it virtually impossible for one driver to start both races.

Then, if he doesn't win the Indy 500, Hornish flies to Charlotte with team owner Penske and jumps into the seat of his stock car to finish the 600.

Of course, the second part of the scenario is the part (if it does happen), that the Penske folks would rather not see. They would expect to spend the night at Indy, celebrating win number 15.

Sources within the Penske Racing organization say that its a good bet that if Hornish is seen at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during the month of May, it will be as a spectator, and on the evening of May 25th he'll be at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

And Stremme's new gig as a test driver for Penske comes from Stremme's relationship with former Penske partner Rusty Wallace's Nationwide team.

Would Penske trade Stremme for Hornish on a full time basis?

Stranger things have happened, but that's a trade that's not likely to happen anytime soon, if ever.

Related: The Daily Dose